Acacia gracilenta facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Acacia gracilenta |
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| Scientific classification | |
| Genus: |
Acacia
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| Species: |
gracilenta
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| Occurrence data from AVH | |
Acacia gracilenta is a type of shrub, a small woody plant, that belongs to the Acacia family. You can find this plant growing naturally in the northern parts of Australia.
What Does Acacia gracilenta Look Like?
This shrub usually grows up to 3 m (9.8 ft) (about 10 feet) tall. It has a somewhat thin and sprawling shape. Its bark can be brown or grey. The young branches, called branchlets, are pale to bright green and smooth. Sometimes they might have a few tiny hairs.
Like most Acacia plants, Acacia gracilenta has special leaf-like parts called phyllodes instead of true leaves. These phyllodes are usually single, but sometimes they grow in pairs. They are long and narrow, almost like a very thin oval.
The phyllodes are bright green and feel a bit like paper. They are flat and mostly straight, or sometimes slightly curved. They can be 2 to 10 cm (0.79 to 3.94 in) long and 1 to 6 mm (0.039 to 0.236 in) wide. Each phyllode has one main vein that stands out, and often two other smaller veins that are also noticeable.
This plant blooms between April and August, producing yellow flowers. The flowers grow in single, cylinder-shaped spikes that are 2 to 5.5 cm (0.79 to 2.17 in) long and 3.5 to 6.5 mm (0.14 to 0.26 in) wide. The flowers themselves are a lovely golden color.
After the flowers bloom, smooth brown seed pods form. These pods look a bit like a string of beads and are curved or openly coiled. They can be 2 to 12 cm (0.79 to 4.72 in) long and 2.5 to 4 mm (0.098 to 0.157 in) wide, with lines running along their length. Inside the pods, the seeds are arranged lengthwise.
How Was Acacia gracilenta Named?
Scientists Mary Tindale and P.G.Kodela were the first to officially describe this plant in 1992. They wrote about it in a scientific paper called New species of Acacia (Fabaceae, Mimosoideae) from tropical Australia, which was published in the journal Telopea.
Later, in 2003, another scientist named Leslie Pedley reclassified it and gave it a different name, Racosperma gracilentum. However, in 2006, it was moved back to the Acacia group, which is where it remains today.
Where Does Acacia gracilenta Grow?
Acacia gracilenta is an endemic plant, which means it grows naturally only in a specific area. For this plant, that area is the top end of the Northern Territory in Australia.
You can mostly find it in places like Arnhem Land, Kakadu National Park, and Nitmiluk National Park. It often grows on high flat areas (plateaux), in deep valleys (gorges), and on slopes. It prefers sandy soils, especially near creeks or streams.
